Karen began as a comedienne on the fringes, and has emerged as an award-winning author and two-time finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama. She is a Dora Award-winning director, having collaborated on all of adult horror clowns Mump & Smoot’s internationally beloved shows, as well as premiere productions of Linda Griffiths’ acclaimed Age of Arousal (ATP) and Heaven Above (Passe Muraille). Karen’s plays and short films featuring ‘Pochsy’ have been presented on five continents and, along with her other literary satires (Drama; Hello…Hello), have earned her a loyal following and a reputation as a fierce original and provocateur. She has performed extensively on stage and screen, in her own shows and short films, and in many others. She is a Dora Award-winning actor, and has been nominated for further Doras, the Betty Mitchell Award, the Gemini, the Alberta Motion Picture Award, among others. Karen premiered All the Little Animals I Have Eaten to sold-out houses at One Yellow Rabbit’s High Performance Rodeo, and toured Crawlspace from Toronto’s Videofag to Vancouver’s Boca del Lupo and, via private kitchens and micro-salons, back to an extended, sold-out run at Soulpepper last spring. Hines is also the recipient of the WIDC BANFF Fellowship.
WIDC Award Winner
“The program has a tangible effect in terms of confidence, community, inspiration and focus. For those of us who did not have the confidence to apply to film school when we were babies, there is nothing else. Refusing to pander to our weaknesses, the program throws us into the fray, sink or swim … but in a professionally and artistically protected environment that does not imperil us, but rather allows us to flourish in the end. I feel ready after the program to direct the scene I directed in the program. In fact, I’m busting at the seams, whereas before, I was terrified. WIDC is like a set of magical training wheels: the best part is when you want them OFF! The [WIDC] program is transformative; one that continues beyond its official boundaries of time and space, through the significant connections between its alumnae, under the ongoing vigilance of its inspired president, Carol Whiteman. I feel terribly lucky to be a part of what appears to be a growing movement.” ~ Karen Hines